GANGSTER John Gizzi has admitted conspiring with others to bring cocaine onto the streets of North Wales.

Gizzi, 39, of St George, Abergele, headed a gang bringing the Class A drug from Merseyside to supply dealers in Conwy and Denbighshire, a judge at Caernarfon Crown Court heard.

He will be sentenced at a later date.

Drugs with a street value of £162,000 were recovered from a car stopped by police during an undercover operation.

Officers also seized nearly £70,000 in cash.

Gizzi, who left prison in March 2009 after being jailed five years ago for assault and cigarette smuggling, was one of 10 men arrested and charged with conspiracy to supply cocaine between August 6, 2009 and April 22 last year.

Telephone traffic linked the 10 men to the conspiracy the court heard.

Two men, Karl Evans, 29, of Llys Nant and John Etheridge, 30, of Llys Arthur, both in Towyn have denied conspiracy and their trial began yesterday.

John Philpotts, outlining the prosecution case against Evans and Etheridge, told the jury the men were arrested after an extensive covert operation by North Wales Police against a drugs gang.

He said: "This was headed by a man called John Gizzi who has pleaded guilty for his part in the conspiracy.

"During the period in question the gang acquired cocaine from Liverpool for onward supply in Conwy and Denbighshire."

Mr Philpotts said police kept watch on the gang over a nine-month period.

During that time they saw Gizzi meeting various other members of the gang in the car parks of pubs and restaurants in the Abergele area. There were also meetings in narrow country lanes.

Last December officers watched Gizzi emerge from the yard of Abergele Building Supplies, a business owned by his father, and drive off in a pick-up truck. He was followed by a Vauxhall Vectra car driven by Neil Sutemire.

The Vectra was later spotted parked in a narrow country lane near Gizzi’s home in St George.

Mr Philpotts said: "The Vectra was stopped by police and a plastic bag containing £29,000 cash was recovered."

In February officers watched Gizzi hand a black gift bag to the driver of a white Ford van. This was also stopped by police.

"The bag was recovered in the footwell of the van. It was empty but in the dashboard cavity, where the airbag would normally be found, officers found £40,000.

"The bag was forensically examined and Gizzi’s DNA was found on it.

The "final piece in the jigsaw" was found in April when three men – Suckley, Gorst and Etheridge – were seen in Walton Village, Liverpool.

Suckley, Mr Philpotts said, was seen going into Clarke’s home and coming out with a large parcel which was put into a Peugeot taxi driven by Richards. The taxi was later stopped by police at Queensferry and found to have a one kilo bar of cocaine inside.

"This was of a high purity with a value of £50-55,000. Diluted with other materials to about 20% purity it would have a street value of £162,000," he said.

Warning the jury, Mr Philpotts added: "Just because the others have admitted the charge does not mean the two defendants in the dock are guilty as well.

"They will say they have innocent answers to the questions we will ask. But we suggest there are too many questions and their answers don’t hold water and that these two played their part in making cocaine available in North Wales."

Barristers for Evans and Etheridge said they would argue they played no part in the conspiracy.